Mixed flocks of juvenile birds are scouting through the woods searching for seeds and insects and they don’t appear to be too choosey about which species they mix with. It is hard to read the expressions of small birds, but an insect eating young Chiffchaff definitely looked confused when the flock of Blue, Great and Marsh Tits it had joined descended on the sunflower hearts in my bird feeders. Meanwhile, some of the migrant birds that came here just to breed, such as cuckoos, are already well on their way south through Africa.

It has been a very good summer for big, showy butterflies, such as Red Admirals, Peacocks and Silver-washed Fritillaries and it seems that even now we are getting some late arrivals of Painted Ladies from France.

Badger cubs are almost indistinguishable from adults at this time of year and they face an uncertain future with the politically motivated badger cull zones being extended, despite all of the evidence that points to their futility. Fox cubs should be dispersing to find new territories, but with the latest figures showing fox numbers across the UK falling by 39% in just 20 years, who knows what fate awaits them.

The Roe Deer rut is subsiding and the successful males will have ensured their genes are passed on to the next generation. The Red Deer stags are now gathering in readiness for their rutting period in October. Just last week one fortunate stag managed to evade the hounds to find his way to the safety of the League’s Baronsdown sanctuary, where he will hopefully remain until after the rut. A couple of hounds pursued the stag onto Baronsdown and one of them, that handed itself in to League staff, enjoyed some downtime relaxing before the huntsman came to collect him.

A call for the National Trust to stop allowing hunts on its land, amid concerns that animals are still being chased and killed under the guide of 'trail' hunting, will be heard at more than 20 sites nationwide.

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As a team, we share the same passion – to stop animal cruelty in the name of sport. We are a tight knit team and we work hard within a fun, relaxed environment. We also offer something many employers don’t – an office full of friendly dogs!

Hunting was banned in England and Wales in 2004, but the law has never been properly enforced, and attempts to weaken or repeal it continue. The hunting law in Scotland is weak, and hunting is still legal in Northern Ireland.

Hurting and killing animals for ‘sport’ is one of the principal causes of animal cruelty in the UK: tens of millions suffer and die each year for ‘leisure’ activities. We’re here to protect those animals.

The Hunting Act 2004 is the law which bans chasing wild mammals with dogs in England and Wales – this basically means that fox hunting, deer hunting, hare hunting, hare coursing and mink hunting are all illegal, as they all are cruel sports based on dogs chasing wild mammals.

Bullfighting is perhaps the most well known spectator “sport” involving the killing of animals for entertainment. It has already been banned in most countries, but each year tens of thousands of bulls are maimed, tortured and killed for entertainment in Spain, Portugal, France, Colombia, Mexico, USA, Venezuela, Ecuador and Peru.

The hidden side of greyhound racing includes dogs kept for long periods in lonely kennels, painful injuries from racing and training, illness and neglect. Shockingly, thousands of surplus dogs die or disappear every year. The League believes dogs should not suffer or die for entertainment or for the profit of the dog racing industry.